Twins In Molesting Found Dead At Motel

March 19, 1986|By Michael Griffin of The Sentinel Staff (Reporter Gina Thomas contributed to this story.)

KISSIMMEE — Twin brothers charged last week with child molesting were found dead Tuesday in a Kissimmee motel room in what police say was an apparent double suicide.

Police found the bodies of John and Henry Roberts, 56, in the bathtub of a room at the Flamingo Motel, 801 E. Vine St. The wrists of both men were slashed and a paring knife was found on the toilet seat near the bathtub, according to police. One of the two beds in the room was saturated with blood.

Motel manager Laxi Patel called police at 1:45 p.m. Tuesday after maids tried to enter to clean the room, but found the door locked from the inside by a chain. Police had to break down the door. The brothers checked into the motel between 9:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. Monday, said Patel.

The Robertses, who both worked for the Osceola County court clerk's office, were charged March 11 with lewd assault involving a 9-year-old boy. They were released on bond March 12 from the Osceola County Jail. Both men were suspended without pay from their $11,000-a-year jobs pending the outcome of their trials. The brothers lived at the Cypress Cove Nudist Resort, 4425 S. Pleasant Hill Road.

Mel Wills, court clerk, said he was ''very saddened and very much surprised. I wish they had tried to work through their problems rather than solve them this way.''

James Hadley, manager at Cypress Cove, said the Robertses were good neighbors and well-liked. Hadley said the brothers had lived at Cypress Cove for 10 years and had worked as volunteers with children's groups. ''They meant a lot to the children and the parents here. We are all completely shocked.''

Shashi B. Gore, associate medical examiner for Orange and Osceola counties, said he ruled out foul play by a third party. ''It is impossible to tell now if both men inflicted their own wounds. We won't know for sure until we perform an autopsy and study the wounds more closely.''